HOORAY FOR HOLLYWOOD – SNAP #2o

Oscar Statuettes by [email protected]

Even if you aren’t a film buff, this is your one shot each year to revel in what, arguably, is our film industry’s best. Prior to the Golden Globes (Sunday, January 15)  and the Oscars (Sunday, February 26), I try to see the films/performances suspected to be award nominees. I make my picks, matching my wits (and, money) against other like-minded cinema groupies. On event nights, have a party, or, if distance is an issue, and, it is for me, keep in touch with film friends via Skype, Cell or E-mail.

This year’s potential award winners are worth the price of the buttered popcorn.  A child who resides in a Paris train station, surviving only by wit (Hugo).  The compelling visual of a terrified Joey (War Horse), conscripted into WW I, bound, wrapped, and trapped in barbed-wire fencing. Re-visiting the American South during the ugly height of the Civil Rights movement. Returning to Hemingway’s Paris of the Twenties. Kathy Bates portraying Gertrude Stein (Midnight in Paris). Films, honoring women: Marilyn (My Week With Marilyn) and Margaret (The Iron Lady) and Albert Nobbs (Albert Nobbs).

George Clooney?  Honestly, the films in which he has a role don’t even have to be good. This year, however, they are worth seeing. (The Descendants and The Ides of March).

Get busy. Make a list of must-see’s and knock them off before Oscar Night. Maybe you’re no match for Roger Ebert but you can still giggle at the gowns, gasp over the jewels (all, borrowed, of course) and choose your own Winners. Your reward? An evening or two of fantastic film fun.